Terrific battles make 'Valkyria' a wild ride

Thursday

Dec 25, 2008 at 12:01 AMDec 25, 2008 at 5:00 PM

JUSTIN HOEGER McClatchy Newspapers

Made by the same developer that was behind the lighthearted Sega Dreamcast RPG "Skies of Arcadia," "Valkyria Chronicles" mostly shares that game's lighthearted tone even in the midst of a nation-spanning war.

? ?Valkyria Chronicles?

? Publisher: Sega

? Platform: Sony PlayStation 3

But unlike "Skies" and such tactical games as "Final Fantasy Tactics," "Valkyria Chronicles" isn't a role-playing game. The path through the game's story is linear, save for optional skirmish missions, and the focus is not on building up powerful individual characters but on using them effectively as a unit.

"Valkyria Chronicles" has two major marks in its favor. The first is a striking art style that combines cel-shaded characters with a subtle visual filter that makes the graphics look like a living, moving piece of hand-painted art. The second is its unique battle system, a combination of real-time movement and discrete turn order.

As for marks against, the game is really talky - players should expect upward of 10 minutes of exposition on either side of each mission. The game has a story to tell, and it's determined to tell it, but the battles are worth the wait.

The game's story concerns Welkin Gunther, an aspiring teacher who gets caught up in the war between his neutral country of Gallia and the invading Imperial Alliance. The game takes place in a rough analog to real-world Europe, and the conflict somewhat resembles World War II.

Promoted to lieutenant after he and his sister use their father's tank, the Edelweiss, to escape their hometown when the empire invades, Welkin and his squad become instrumental agents in the war.

But Welkin and his friends need the player's help. Each scenario places Welkin and his troops in an area riddled with enemies and tasks the player with objectives such as defeating all or specific foes, or capturing an enemy's camp. And Welkin's squad is usually outnumbered.

The sides move in turns, but not in the strict single movement and action per character that is a tactical game's norm. Instead, each side receives command points at the start of a turn - foot units require one command point to act, and tanks require two, but within that framework, players may move and act with whatever units they wish, even multiple times in a turn.

Welkin's squad earns experience and money by winning battles, and these are used to increase the overall level of entire soldier classes and to research equipment upgrades for squad members and the Edelweiss.